Man's fascination and preoccupation with winter activities have existed perhaps as long as man's ability to withstand the ravages of winter's temperature. To this end, the most readily discernible differences between the seasons has not only been the associated foliage and colors, but also the ability to manipulate on terrain having diverse surface conditions e.g. snow and ice.
To this end, various devices have been proposed in the past which allow people to benefit from gravity and traverse downhill for amusement, and the following patents reflect the state of the art of which applicant is aware in so far as they appear to be germane to the patent process at hand:
U.S. Pat. No. 2,447,700; Hassman
U.S. Pat. No. 3,830,513; Hunt
U.S. Pat. No. 2,963,299; Smith
U.S. Pat. No. 3,917,301; Fabris
U.S. Pat. No. 3,744,811; Johnston
Of these, it should be apparent that although a seated device has been provided for the occupant who is to be propelled by gravity down a hill, the steering associated with these devices has traditionally been the ability to lean and benefit from a side-cut of a single ski, but the skill with which one can manipulate such a mono-ski determines how long the ride will last.
It should be apparent that the skill level required to maintain one's balance on these skis is substantially the same as that required from a conventional skiing arrangement, or in fact the skill level may be somewhat higher since there is only a single ski upon which to balance rather than two which is the usual arrangement.
In any event, none of these references disclose, contemplate, or render obvious the apparatus at hand which can be characterized in that a device has been provided that does not rely upon the intrinsic balance of a person due to the frame's relative breadth so as to provide stability, a steering mechanism articulated to the frame is provided so that control can be maintained by traversing down rather steep sections of a hill, and braking is provided should the need for its use arise unexpectedly.